Faculty

Boris Birmaher, MD

Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry and Endowed Chair in Early Onset Bipolar Disease

Contact Details

3811 O'Hara St.
Pittsburgh
 
PA
 
15213
Email
Website
Child and Adolescent Bipolar Spectrum Services
Assistant
Rita Scholle
schollere@upmc.edu

Education & Training

MD
Valle College of Medicine
Medicine, Valle College of Medicine, Cali, Colombia
General Psychiatry, Haddassah Medical College and the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
Clinical Research, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center and New York Psychiatric Institute
Child Psychiatry, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center and New York Psychiatric Institute
Biological Psychiatry, Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Current Appointments

Director, Child and Adolescent Bipolar Spectrum Services

Professional Affiliations

Member, American Psychiatric Association
Member, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Member, Society of Biological Psychiatry
Member, Hispanic Mental Health Association
Member, Allegheny County Medical Society

Selected Honors & Awards

Excellence in Psychiatry Award, American Society of Hispanic Psychiatry
Colvin Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Mood Disorders Research, Brain & Behavior Research Foundation
Ellen Frank Psychiatric Research Award, Mental Health Association of Allegheny County

Research Interests

Bipolar spectrum disorders; Mood and anxiety disorders; Phenomenology, course & treatment
Selected Research Publications & Products
  1. Birmaher B, Merranko J, Gill MK, Hafeman D, Goldstein T, Goldstein B, Hower H, Strober M, Axelson D, Ryan N, Yen S, Diler R, Iyengar S, Kattan M, Weinstock L, Keller M. Predicting personalized risk of mood recurrences in youths and young adults with bipolar disorder. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2020 Jan 21 (Online ahead of print). PMID: 31978620. PMCID: PMC7371512.
  2. Bertocci MA, Hanford L, Manelis A, Iyengar S, Youngstron E, Gill MK, Monk K, Versace A, Bonar L, Bebko G, Ladouceur CD, Perlman S, Diler R, Horwitz S, Arnold E, Hafeman D, Travis M, Kowatch R, Holland SK, Fristad M, Findling R, Birmaher B, Phillips ML. Clinical, cortical thickness, and neural activity predictors of future affective lability in youth at risk for bipolar disorder: initial discovery and independent sample replication. Molecular Psychiatry. 2019 Dec;24(12):1856-1867. PMID: 31628415. PMCID: PMC6814510.
  3. Shalev A, Merranko J, Goldstein T, Miklowitz DJ, Axelson D, Goldstein BI, Brent D, Monk K, Hickey MB, Hafeman D, Sakolsky D, Diler R, Birmaher B. A longitudinal study of family functioning in offspring of bipolar parents. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2019 Oct;58(10):961-970. PMID: 30768400. PMCID: PMC6584080.
  4. Birmaher B, Gill MK, Axelson DA, Goldstein BI, Goldstein TR, Yu H, Liao F, Iyengar S, Diler RS, Strober M, Hower H, Yen S, Hunt J, Merranko JA, Ryan ND, Keller MB. Longitudinal trajectories and associated baseline predictors in youths with bipolar spectrum disorders. Am J Psychiatry, 2014 Sep; 171(9):990-9. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp. 2014. 13121577. PMID 24874203. PMCID: PMC4164021.
  5. Birmaher B, Axelson DA, Monk K, Kalas C, Clark DB, Ehmann M, Bridge J, Heo J, Brent DA. Fluoxetine for the treatment of childhood anxiety disorders. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2003;42(4):415-23. PMID: 12649628.

Clinical Interests

Pediatric mood and anxiety disorders
Selected Clinical Publications & Products
  1. Birmaher B. Bipolar Disorders. In: Martin A, Volkmar FR, eds. Lewiss Child and Adolescent Psychiatry: A Comprehensive Textbook. 5th ed. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer, in press.
  2. Birmaher B and Brent DA. Depressive Disorders. Dulcans Textbook of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, APA Publishing, 2015
  3. Birmaher B. UpToDate: Diagnosis and Treatment of Children and Adolescents with Bipolar Disorders, 2014.
  4. Birmaher B, Brent D, Bernet W, Bukstein O, Walter H, Benson RS, Chrisman A, Farchione T, Greenhill L, Hamilton J, Keable H, Kinlan J, Schoettle U, Stock S, Ptakowski KK, Medicus J. Practice parameter for the assessment and treatment of children and adolescents with depressive disorders. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2007;46(11):1503-26. PMID: 18049300. 10075518.
  5. Birmaher B, Brent DA, Chiappetta L, Bridge J, Monga S, Baugher M. Psychometric properties of the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED): a replication study. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 1999;38(10):1230-6. PMID: 10517055.

Education Interests

Medical and resident education; Research mentorship; Mentoring international scholars

Psychiatry Research: Neural Markers of Mania That Distinguish Inpatient Adolescents with Bipolar Disorder from Those with Other Psychopathology

Drs. Rasim Diler and Michele Bertocci

Adolescents with manic or hypomanic episodes—key features of bipolar disorder (BD)—may experience delayed correct diagnosis or inappropriate treatment because some symptoms of BD are also seen in other disorders (such as unipolar depressive disorders and attention deficit/hyperactive disorder). A team of scientists from the University of Pittsburgh including Michele Bertocci, PhD (Assistant Professor of Psychiatry)...

Behavioral Health Experts, Patients & Families Attend Child and Adolescent Bipolar Spectrum Services Conference

Rasim Diler, MD and Boris Birmaher, MD

The fifth Child and Adolescent Bipolar Services (CABS) conference, focused on pediatric bipolar disorder spectrum disorders, addressed the theme, “Irritability and Bipolar Spectrum Disorders in Youth: Facts and Myths-Assessment, Monitoring and Treatment.” The CABS conference presents current research and clinical knowledge about the treatment of bipolar disorder and comorbid conditions to professionals, patients...

JAMA Psychiatry: Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Adolescents With Bipolar Disorder 

Dr. Tina Goldstein

Up to 50% of youth with bipolar spectrum disorder attempt suicide, and of all psychiatric diagnoses, bipolar spectrum disorder imparts the greatest risk of death by suicide in adolescents. Although multiple psychosocial interventions are effective for mood stabilization and for decreasing the risk of mood episode recurrence, no treatment specifically targets suicidal behavior in youth with bipolar spectrum disorder...

Boris Birmaher, MD, Receives Prestigious Ruane and Burlingame Prizes 

Dr. Boris Birmaher

It is our great pleasure to announce that Boris Birmaher, MD (Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry and Endowed Chair in Early Onset Bipolar Disease), has been honored with two major prizes in the field of psychiatry: the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation Ruane Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Research, and the Institute of Living’s 2022 C. Charles Burlingame Award. The Ruane...

JAMA Psychiatry: Genetic Variants Are Associated with Risk for Bipolar Disorder

Birmaher et al. JAMA Psychiatry 2021

Bipolar disorder (BD) is a familial illness that is associated with functional impairment and increased risk for suicide and substance use. The disorder is highly heritable, and research has identified many common genetic variants associated with risk for the disorder. Studies including the Pittsburgh Bipolar Offspring Study (BIOS) have found that offspring of parents with BD are at elevated, specific risk to...